Yarn bulking method

ABSTRACT

A method of bulking yarn in package form comprises subjecting yarn in a substantially tensionless package to a heated fluid. Also, apparatus for performing the method and the bulked package.

United States Patent 1191 1111 v Eschenbach et a]. Nov. 13, 1973 [54]YARN BULKING METHOD FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS lflvemorsi PaulEschenbach; Jerry King; 318,236 9 1930 Great Britain 68/189 Dennis L.Riddle, all of Spartanburg, SC.

[73.] Assignee: Deering Milliken Research Primary Examiner-William?Price Corporation, Spartanburg, Attorney-Norman C. Armltage et a1.

[22] Filed: Sept. 16, 1971 [2]] App]. No.: 181,069

57 ABSTRACT 52 U.S. Cl. 8/149.3 51 1111.01. D06c 1/00 A method Ofbulking yarn in Package form comprises 58 Field of Search 8/149.1,149.2, 149.3, subjecting y in a Substantially tensionless Package 3/154155 155 1 1551; 3 1 9 3; 2 5 B to a heated fluid. Also, apparatus forperforming the method and the bulked package.

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1 Claim, 18 Drawing Figures3,528,180 9/1970 Karrer et a1. 8/149.l X

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PATENIED W 13 I975 SHEEI 2 UP 7 FIG-9- QOOOOOOOOOQ PAIENIEDuuv 13 1915SHEEI MIF 7 I PATENTEU NEW 1 3 1973 SHEET 7 OF 7 OOOOOOOO w M u w wL O 89O FIG- l6- YARN BULKING METHOD This invention relates to a novel methodand apparatus for treating textile yarns to increase the bulk thereof.More particularly, the invention relates to a method and apparatus forbulking yarn in package form.

One commonly employed method for bulking yarns is the skein dyeingprocess. In skein dyeing the yarn to be bulked is wound into skein formfrom bobbins or cones and the skeins loaded on a large carrier bydraping the skeins over horizontally mounted poles. The carriers loadedwith skeins are placed in a dye bath to dye the yarn and tosimultaneously bulk the yarn. After the dyeing and bulking arecompleted, the skeins are centrifuged to extract excess liquid and thenbackwound into packages which are dried in an oven prior to shipping.

The present invention provides a novel method and apparatus for bulkingyarn in a wound package form with a high degree of uniformity along itslength. The invention also provides a novel method for providingpolyester yarns having a substantially higher degree of bulk than isachievable by the skein dyeing process. A further advantage of theinvention is the bulking in a package form suitable for subsequentpressure dyeing methods. Another advantage is the bulking of singlepackages which permits the bulking apparatus to be located adjacent thewinding apparatus.

A method of the invention for bulking yarn in package form comprisessubjecting yarn in a substantially tensionless package to a heatedfluid. Advantageously, the heated fluid is passed through the yarnpackage from the inside to the outside thereof or vice versa in themodification, and preferably, the fluid flow is advanced along thelength of the package from one end to the other. The fluid generally isan aqueous fluid and particularly steam above or below atmosphericpressure.

Yarn packages suitable for bulking in accordance with the method of theinvention are packages in which the yarn is in a substantiallytensionless condition. In one yarn package configuration which maybe,employed successfully, yarn is disposed around a central corein ahelical pattern so that the yarn forms a package composed of anascending series of loops in which the yarn is adjacent the core alongone portion of each loop and adjacent the periphery of the package atanother portion thereof. Examples of suitable patterns are shown inFIGS. 3-5 of- Polak et al., U.S.- Pat. No. 2,404,742, with the patternof FIG. 5 being preferred.

The method of the invention will be described in greater detail withreference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGS. 1-9 are schematic illustrations of' one processing sequence of thebulking method of the invention;

FIG. isan exploded perspective view of one form of apparatus forperforming the 'bulking' method of the invention;

FIG. 11 is an exploded perspective view of the appa v ratus shown inFIG. 10 during another step in the bulking method of the invention;

FIG. 12 is an enlarged side elevation of the apparatus shown in FIG. 10;I

FIG. 13 is an enlarged sectional view of the dome portion of theapparatus shown in FIG. 10;

FIG. 14 is a sectional view taken along line l414 of FIG. 13;

. posed over a movable nozzle 14. Below the package 11 and surroundingthe nozzle 14 is a plenum chamber 15. The base 13 includes a peripheralflange 17 which engages rim 18 of dome 19. Dome 19 has a line 20 forintroducing an inert gas into the dome and also a pressure gauge 21. Thedome also includes an inner conical portion 22. A line 23 for exhaustinggas from the vicinity of the package connects to base 13. As shown inFIG. 2, the dome 19 is disposed over the package 11 with cone 22 incontact with the package and flange 17 engaging rim 18 to form atreating chamber. In FIG. 3, a flow of air is introduced through line 20to pressurize the chamber. FIG. 4 shows the start of the heat treatingstep with a heated fluid, e.g., steam, being forced from nozzle 14 intoplenum chamber 15. This flow of steam into plenumchamber 1 5advantageously is performed prior to the beginning of the steaming stepto insure that the velocity of the steam and the temperature of thenozzle 14 are within operating limits before the steam contacts the yarnand the nozzle advances through the package 11 as shown inFIG. 5..Thiscondition is particularly important with yarns such as polyester yarnswith which full bulking cannot ordinarily be achieved if partial bulkinghas taken place prematurely. Passing of the steam flow through the.package causes the yarn to shrink and bulk and reduces the size of thepackage as the nozzle advances therethrough. This is shown in FIGS. 5and '6. After the steaming step has been completed,-the nozzle 14 iswithdrawn from the interior of the package as shown in FIG. 7 and a flowof inert gas is introduced into the chamber through line 20. Any steamand condensate in the treating chamber is exhausted through line 23. Asshown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the flow of inert gas'is continued as the dome19 is moved from around bulked package 11. The bulked package 11 is thenremoved from the base 13, and the sequence is repeated with a new yarnpackage.

While the above-described sequence of operations, as shown in FIGS. 1-9of the drawings, is important to achieve a high degree of bulk withyarns which are difficult to bulk such as those including polyesterfibers, the sequence may be simplified for the processing of yarns whichbulk readily. For example, acrylic yarns maybe bulked without theinitial pressurization with inert gas as shown in FIG. 3. Also, it isnot critical that the fluid'treatment' bedoneas the nozzle is movedthrough the core 12 of the package. For example, the heat treatment maybe accomplished when the nozzle 14 is in its upper position as shown inFIG. 6 of the drawings or the heated fluid may be introduced through gasline 20 and the nozzle eliminated. This simplification of the processingsequence generally is permissible with yarns that bulk easily and can bebulked successfully with known processes such a'sskein dyeing. However,as pointed out above, in the case of polyester yarns which cannot bebulked to a high degree by a skein dyeing process, it is preferred thatthe initial pressurization and the particular steaming sequenceutilizing a moving nozzle shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 of the drawings beemployed.

The processing sequence particularly suitable for the bulking ofpolyester yarn subjects the yarn to an inert gas at a super atmosphericpressure prior to the heat treating step. Suitable gases include air,nitrogen, carbon dioxide, argon and similar gases which are inert to theyarn. Both the inert gas and the succeeding hot fluid treatment areperformed at a super atmospheric pressure, for example, between about 2and 50 pounds per square inch gauge pressure and preferably betweenabout 5 and psi. While the inert gas treatment generally is performed atambient temperatures, the hot fluid treatment will be at an elevatedtemperature, usually between about 220 and 280F.

Whre the fluid treatment of the yarn package is accomplished while thenozzle advances through the package from one end to the other, it isdesirable that the nozzle have an orifice which will pass the fluidthrough the package from the inside to the outside thereof withsufficient velocity to uniformly bulk the package. For example, a steamflow rate between about 5 and 25 pounds per minute advantageously may beemployed. Advantageously, the nozzle orifice deflects the fluid in aslightly downward or backward direction during the advance through thepackage.

One preferred form of apparatus for performing the bulking method of theinvention is shown in FIGS. l012 of the drawings. In FIG. 10, a yarnpackage is positioned on a support 31 disposed above a base 32. A dome33 is located concentrically with package 30 and movable longitudinallyinto contact with base 32. Movement of dome 33 is achieved with acylinder 34 which is operatively connected thereto through bracket 35.The movement of the dome is controlled by a plurality of guide rollers37 and 38 which. contact support member 39. Support member 39 has anopening 41 therein for safety stop piston 42 of cylinder 43. When dome33 is in a position surrounding the yarn package 30, roller 38 engages aspring actuated rod 44 with suit able projections which engage sensingswitch 45.

Dome 33 has an air line 47' connected thereto to provide for the flow ofa gas into the dome cavity. Disposed within the upper portion of thedome is a cone 48 which engages the upper portion of the yarn package 30when the dome surrounds the package. A weir 49 is positioned within thelower portion of the dome to collect any water condensing on the insidewalls of the dome. Rim 51 of the dome 33 includes a pair of cam surfaces52 for securing the dome to the base 32 through a locking ring assembly53. The locking ring assembly has a periphery which is movable by meansof cylinder 54 and a plate 55. A switch 56 is positioned adjacentcylinder 54 to sense movement thereof. Rollers 57 are mounted inassociation with the locking ring assembly 53 through brackets 58 forengagement with the cam surfaces 52 of the dome flange 51 when the lockring assembly is rotated to the closed position. A spring loaded lockingpin 59 is disposed for engagement with an opening in plate 55 when thelocking ring assembly 53 is in its closed position. A sensing switch 60is located adjacent locking pin 59.

A nozzle 61 is positioned in a central opening of base 32 as shown inFIG. 12. A seal 62 is disposed within the opening and bears against thesurface of the nozzle.

Nozzle 61 has a transverse opening 63 adjacent the end thereof throughwhich the fluid is emitted. In the normal rest or downward position ofthe nozzle 61, the transverse opening 63 is located within a plenumchamber 64 disposed below the base 32. Drains 65 are positioned aboutthe periphery of the base 32 to permit the removal of fluid and/orcondensate formed during the processing of the yarn. Fluid istransmitted'to the nozzle 61 through a line 67 including a valve 68 asshown in FIGS. 10 and 11.

The nozzle is moved vertically during processing by a drive mechanismincluding chains 69 and sprockets 70 and 71. Sprockets 71 are connectedthrough shaft 72 to pinion gear 73 which engages rack 74. Rack 74 isactuated by cylinder 75. The movement of nozzle 61 is guided by roller77 moving along guide rail 78. Guide roller 77 is connected to nozzle 61through a bracket 79. The action of cylinder 75 is controlled by limitswitches 81 and 82 positioned to engage the guide bracket 79 at theupper and lower extremities of the nozzle movement.

In the operation of the apparatus shown in FIGS. 10-12, a yarn package30 is positioned on support 31, and suitable controls (not shown) areactuated causing piston 42 to withdraw from opening 41, removing thesafety stop from the path of dome 33 so that dome 33 is lowered by theaction of cylinder 34 into contact with base 32. When this contactisestablished roller 38 bears against connecting rod 44 to actuate switch45. Thereafter, cylinder 54 rotates locking ring assembly 53 so thatrollers 57 engage cam surfaces 52 of the dome flange 51. When thelocking ring assembly reaches its closed position, pin 59 engages anopening in plate to lock the ring and base to the dome.

The processing cycle then is performed following the sequence shown inFIGS. 19 of the drawings. Progressive steaming is accomplished byactuating cylinder-75 which moves rack 74 and thereby rotates piniongear 73 and sprockets 71, moving chains 69 which are secured to bracket79. This movement raises the nozzle 61 and advances it through thecentral core of the package. The heated fluid is emitted from transverseopening 63 of the nozzle by valve 68 and through line 67. Uponcompletion of the heat treating step, the contact of switch 81 bybracket 79 reverses the action of cylinder 75 and rack 74 so thatsprockets 71 rota'te'in the opposite direction moving the nozzle 61 toits lower or normal rest position. After the inert gas has beenintroduced into the dome through line 47 and the condensate removedthrough drains 65, locking pin 59 is withdrawn and cylinder 54 isreversed unlocking ring assembly 53. Thereafter, the actuation ofcylinder 34 raises dome 33 to its most upward position and cylinder 43moves piston 42 into opening 41 to provide a safety stop againstaccidental dropping of the dome. This permits the bulked yarn package tobe removed from support 31. A new package then is inserted for bulkingand the operation repeated.

In treating certain yarn, such as acrylics, at elevated temperatures,the yarn is bulked excessively as comaas the steam nozzle is drivenupwardly. In the modification of FIGS. 16-18 the steam is not ejecteduntil the nozzle 14 reaches the position shown in FIG. 17 so it isdesirable for uniform bulking efficiency at low pressure within thedome, to cause the steam to flow through the package from outside toinside.

To accomplish the desired result the support 31 and base 32 wereeliminated and the plenum member 80 substituted therefor. Suitable screwmembers 82 secure the plenum member 80 to the locking ring assembly 53so that the plenum member 80 supports the yarn package 30 thereon.

in operation steam flows from the nozzle 14 due to the action of steamejector 88 and flows initially outward, then inward through the package30 down through the opening 84 in the plenum member 80 into the plenumchamber 81, out through the condensate lines 65, through the steamejector 88 into the drain conduit 90. It can readily be seen that if theplenum member 80 was not employed the steam and/or condensate would tendto by-pass the package and flow directly down to the condensate lines 65the steam ejector 88 is used to pull the steam out the nozzle since thepressure in the dome is greater than the steam pressure.

The above description and drawings show that the present inventionprovides a novel method and apparatus for bulking yarn in a tensionl'esspackage configuration. Furthermore, the method of the invention resultsin a product having a high degree of bulk uniformity along the length ofthe packaged yarn. Moreover, the invention enables polyester and acrylicyarns to be bulked to a substantially higher degree than is achievableby skein dyeing processes. Also, the bulked yarn package is suitable foruse in pressure dyeing techniques. In addition, since the apparatuspermits the bulking of single packages, the bulking apparatus may belocated adjacent the package winding station. This minimizes thepossibility of damage to the packages which have been wound in a loose,substantially tensionless form.

From the above description and drawings, it will be apparent thatfurther modifications and variations may be made in the described methodand apparatus within the scope of the present invention. For example,certain steps of the bulking method may be rearranged and/or eliminatedfor particular yarns. Also, movement of the dome and the nozzle may beachieved by other means. Therefore, the invention is to be limited onlyby the following claims.

That which is claimed is:

1. A method of bulking acrylic yarn in package form comprising the stepsof: forming a plenum chamber with an opening therein, placing a packageof acrylic yarn over the opening in said plenum chamber, enclosing theexterior of package of yarn from ambient atmospheric conditions, passingsteam into an area outside of said package, ejecting steam from saidplenum chamber to cause said steam outside of said package to passthrough said package and into said plenum chamber.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 7 1,95Dated November 13, I973 I Paul W. Eschenbach; Jerry N. King; Dennis L.Riddle It is certified that error appears in the above-identified patentand that said Letters Patent are hereby corrected as shown below:

7 Column 4, lines-'60 and 61 "comapred" should read compared--. In Claim1, line 24, 1:he-- should be inserted between the first "of" and"package".

-..3igned and sealed this 30th day of April 1972;.

(SEAL) Attest: I

EDWARD M.I*LETGHER,JR. c MARSHALL DANN Attesting Officer I Commissionerof Patents FORM 50-1050 (10-69) USCOMM-DC scan-Pan apis. GOVERNMENTram-nus Offlc! up o-qcgfl'sy

